Phil Jagielka relieved after Everton hold on to defeat Fulham

Seamus Coleman

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Phil Jagielka admits Everton almost let a two-goal lead slip after allowing Fulham back into the game as the Toffees secured a 2-1 victory which has taken them into the top eight of the Premier League.

After Seamus Coleman opened the scoring in the first half, Louis Saha doubled the lead shortly after the restart and Jagielka was pleased to see his side hold on after Climp Dempsey’s goal signalled a Fulham riposte.

“We came out in the second half with a perfect start, obviously with Louis’ goal but unfortunately we couldn’t keep the 2-0 lead for long and we like to do things the hard way, but thankfully we’ve got the three points,” Jagielka told ESPN.

The defender almost got himself on the scoresheet after watching his late header cleared off the line by Carlos Salcido and with Fabio Capello watching in the stands, Jagielka insists he felt no extra pressure to perform with Italian about to name his squad for the upcoming European Championship qualifiers.

“I probably should have scored anyway but I’m not bothered now anyway we won 2-1 so everybody’s happy,” he said.

“No, I didn’t feel pressure – I think he’s got a pretty good idea what his squad will be.

“Obviously when you know he’s there you try and put in a half decent performance and hopefully I did that and we’ll obviously just have to wait until Sunday and see what the squad is.”

Coleman who opened the scoring for the Toffees with a powerful header gave an impressive display and the defender admits he was pleased his recent performances have been rewarded with a goal.

“I’ve had a few chances in the last couple of games at the back post and the keepers pulled out a couple of saves but I was lucky enough today that it went in in the end and thank god we won,” he stated.

The 23-year-old believes he is improving with regular Premier League football.

“I’d like to think so,” he said. “I’d like to think I’ve come on lots since the start of the season but I’ve still got a lot to learn and playing with these players every week can always help.

“Going into the international break we definitely needed to get the win and hopefully from here we can kick on with the last couple of games and get more wins.”